Rade shook his head in the negative. “They’re scoundrels.”
I went back to aiming over Krachma’s shoulder. “You’ve got a reputation alright. It’s not a very trustworthy one, though.”
“Such is life. You’ll have to take me at my word that all I require is the treasure. Surrender it and we’ll leave you be.”
“Don’t you dare, Carnavon,” Dathka snarled. “That belongs to Carcalla. Give them nothing. Fight like a man.”
Gerzog smacked her upside the head. “Shut up, woman.”
For once, I agreed with the evil mercenary orc. Now was really not the time for Latrocinium bravado, because unless Cutter Joran was about to pull up in a boat full of thugs, her threats were empty.
“We’re both reasonable sorts, Mr. Gerzog. How about as a show of good faith, you let our friends go, and then we can talk it out?”
“Treasure first, or we slay you and take it off your bodies.”
It never hurt to try a bluff. “You know you can’t, or you already would have. You could fill this tunnel with fire, but you haven’t yet, because you’ve surely heard how delicate the lamp is. The slightest bump or unnatural change in temperature, and it’ll shatter into a thousand pieces. Then all that precious Permanence will fade into the ether.”
Gerzog’s red eyes squinted hard at me. Apparently, he hadn’t heard that before—because I’d just made it up—but such was the nature of myth and legend. Chronomancy was a lost art, so who was going to correct me? I thought my line of trogshit sounded rather convincing.
“Where else you gonna go? Through us? I see you’re short a Squalo and a gladiator dwarf.”
“They didn’t make it. Trax got hit by a curse on the way in, and Rufus stepped on another trap when he ran down to warn us about you.” Since we were all speckled with dwarf blood, that probably sounded plausible. “But I’ve still got a lizard who’ll bite your face off and a lob who’s tough as a boulder. If you start to make it past this rock, we’ll drown that fragile lamp in seawater and ruin it.”
Gerzog had an evil grin. “The old if-we-can’t-have-it-nobody-will ploy. Classic. It’s unfortunate this is how we met, Carnavon, because I could use someone ruthless like you in the Tooth and Claw.”
“Is this the part where you try to get chummy and bribe me? Because I’ve already got a job managing an academy. Speaking of which, what the hell are you doing with these pricks, Danny?”
“Yeah, you traitorous ratlet!” Azarin shouted. “We took you in and treated you kindly. And this is how you pay us back?”
Danny peeked around Bognar’s shoulder. “You did give me a chance, so I really am sorry. But that adventurer cousin I told you about was in Gerzog’s company. When they heard Rufus’ singing, and he knew I was an Outcast too, they came looking.He found me last night and threatened if I didn’t help him, he’d hurt my family.”
Gerzog’s piglike nostrils flared as he snorted. “Why do you lie? You are no victim. I didn’t threaten your family. You sold your loyalty for a bag of Tetars and the promise of a fat share.”
Danny sounded sheepish, “Well, yeah. Got me there. That too.”
“You two-faced son of a bitch,” Rade sneered. “We broke bread together.”
“Moldy bread! I’m tired of being poor, Lord Tartaros. Not all of us get to be born fancy noblemen like you.”
Poor stupid Danny didn’t even grasp that Rade wasn’t a real noble. He was at best a bastard with delusions of grandeur. Now I was really pissed off. “Rufus died because of you.”
“That’s not my fault! Gerzog told me nobody was supposed to get hurt, I swear. I feel real bad about Rufus, I do. But I’m not as talented as you guys. You saw how bad I did in the arena. I’m never going to make it as a wizard, but I can make a good living as a mercenary.”
“You think Gerzog’s ever going to trust someone who’s shown he’s a lying fucker who’ll sellout his friends so easily? Once he’s used you, he’ll get rid of you, just to save himself the hassle.”
Gerzog nodded as I said that. “Perceptive. The Tooth and Claw’s got no room for turncoats… Aziz, kill the boy.”
Danny turned to look behind him. “No, wait, I?—”
A spectral hand formed around Danny’s throat and choked off any more words. He fell, kicking and struggling. I could no longer see him behind Bognar, but could hear every excruciating second of him getting magically strangled to death.
We were going through a lot of students today.
Gerzog watched Danny’s slow, painful demise, and once the thrashing stopped, he said, “I despise disloyalty.”
“The dumbfuck should’ve seen that coming,” Azarin said.
I was seething. I’d liked Danny. He’d betrayed us, so I likely would’ve killed him myself, but this had all been so sudden that his casual murder still offended me.
